1 of 1

Write now Article Tools

A season ends bringing about change, but usually it takes a tad longer. Three days after the conclusion of the Premiership season, three managers left their jobs, following Glenn Roeder who took his coup-de-grace a fortnight before.
The style of each departure was very different. A punk rocking 44-year-old who only turned off his ipod when the chairman arrived at a board meeting, and put them right back on after rbeing canned, before gathering his notes and exiting the room. A knackered 42-year-old, leaving after a superbly plotted victory away from home, for, he insisted, some desperately needed rest and recuperation. A relegated 58-year-old quitting, seemingly intent on returning with another championship club that 'respected' him as soon as possible. Premiership boards have a reputation for ruthlessness, but only two were actually sacked. Nevertheless, it's a darn shame that the coaching landscape has been altered significantly by the removal of Stuart Pearce, Paul Jewell and Neil Warnock.

Manchester City are currently involved in takeover talks, and many pundits thought was that Pearce would keep his gig until the smoke cleared. The current regime,long known for its fanatic worship at the alter of failure, decided, however, that they will go out kicking and screaming. The rumor grinds out the names of a slew of Foreign coaches- Ronald Koeman, Erwin Koeman, Louis van Gaal, Claudio Ranieri, Gerard Houllier; even the ober ober loser, Sven-Goran Eriksson - City's future is a Sarajevo of possibilities. Sadly, Pearce's successor will perhaps inherit two proven premiership players : Richard Dunne and Micah Richards, a teen project in Stephen Ireland, and the few brilliant moments the Congo Kid, Emile Mpenza has shown. Mpenza is the only worthwhile City striker. The probable departures of the serial sociopath Joey Barton and Sylvain Distin, whose contract expires in the summer and seems to have deliberately sleepwalked through the second half of the season to avoid i!
njury, pose City's two biggest problems. In a whole season City scored a mere 10 Premiership goals at home in the City of Manchester stadium. A huge job of rebuilding from ground zero is in order. Pearce's only genuine achievement was in creating a solid defense, but as Distin departs on a Bosman, reliable reinforcements to accompany Dunne will be hard to find.
For Wigan, there are even fewer hopes. Despite their spirited final victory at Bramall Lane on Sunday, aided by the single greatest performance

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Reflections on Premiership coaches leaving their teams in 2007?
We want to hear your view. Write now!